Drying house



Nov M, 1950 I R. E. MAYO 2,529,621

DRYING HOUSE Filed May 51, 1946 s Sheets-Sheet 1 R. E. MAYO DRYING HOUSE Nov. 14, 1950 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed May 31, 1946 REJWAYO.

R. E. MAYO DRYING HOUSE Nov. M, 1950 3 Sheets-Sheet 5 Filed May 31, 1946 R. E. MAYO,

Patented Nov. 14,1950

UNITED- vSf'l.A'ITYES FlCE DRYING House" Reubin:E.:Mayo, Maury, N. o. Application May 31', 1946;. Serial No. 673,591

This invention" relates to dryinghouses and more particularly tosolar heaters and novelm'eansa combined therewith for conditioning air for-use in tobacco-curers or thelike.

Oneo'f the objectsof the invention is to: improve tobacco curers-o'f the kind employingfuelso that heat from the sun may be employed to aid in the curing or drying -whereby fuel maybe saved.

Another object is to supply a dryer having the above-mentioned features, and in which the air supplied to the fuel burning unitor units ,may be preheated by the sun during the daytimeand by waste heat from thef uel burning unit or units during the night. 7 r

A still further object is to a- 'curer'or dryer having means for recycling mix-edlproducts of combustion and air'j'ronr the top f the berm when desirable, to the fuel burning unit-or units.

Another objectis-toprovide ancvelsolar heater especially designed forheating air or the-like at thehottom portion of a tobacco curing barn-or its equivalent. I

Theaboveas well as: variousother objects w l become: apparent from: the following-description, considered together with the accompanying drawings, the: latter of which illustrate exemplary forms of the invention.

In the; drawings- I Fig 1 is: a. transverse vertical sectional view' of. one. type of'toba'cco curing harm provided withaniembodiment of my invention.

Fig. 2 is a perspective view of another type. of tobacco curing; barn and. illustrating" some other features :cf-my invention.

Fig. 3. is aitransverse vertical sectional View taken on the line 3'3. ofrFig 2-.

Fig; 4 is an enlarged? vertical sectional viewof a. detail.

Fig. 5 is a perspective view of a detailof the structure shown in-Eig. 1)..

In the embodiment of the invention. illustrated.

in Fig. .1, 5 designates: theside-walls ofv adrying' house of a tobacco curingpbarn havingapeak roof 6 of special constructions Arranged, on the. floor of: the barn is one-:or more oil burning units 1, preferably of theopen burner type, disclosed. in. my Patent 2,090,633. Each of such units is provided with an air inlet. 8-: that may have a: branch 9 controlled bya damper Iii. to permit thev introduction. of air from the floor portion-ofzthe barn. Each inlet 8 mayvalso-be provided witha suction-fan i l to f'a cilitate the drawing of air: downwardly from the roof, portion oftheham through a conduit i2.

16: Claims; Cl. 5263-4 As hereinbefore mentioned, the roof is of spe-- cia-l' construction; and it preferablyconsists of a top l 3 and 'bot tom -l d spacedapart and with the interveningspace divided by a; partition 1'5 into an upper passageway 16 and a lower passageway H. Each of the parts 1 3 to fl, inclusive; may extend trom-en'd -fio end ef'the barn or for any desired length thereof, as will beobvious. The parts- Hand =l 4 are-fbrmed-of' any suitable sheet material, capableof being-rapidly heated and of retainingheat impounded therein. For-example; the parts It and l l may be madeof sheet metal. The part I5 preferably has heat insulation to prevent .the di-ssipation: or heat: from the interior of. the barn. wherrthe'heat of the sun cannot be utilized topreheat air ted to the oil burning units; j

The ventilating; peak. I53 of; the-barn has llloll'w' gitudina-l'- edge; portiom +9 spaced. from. *the-..r.oot so as to allow airg-tc, -en.ter'the1 upper ends'sofi thepassageways i6. when-..desired; and such entryis,

controlled by any ;suitable.imeans-, such as: am-

gulardampers 210 pivotally supportedat H for movement about horizontal. axesi I?he down; Wardly extending; wings 22: of these dampers function to control-theentry of. heated and gases from the interior oithe barn into the. upper ends of. the passageway lT 'and' also to. [6, if desired. Other. dampers 273' are pivotally mounted in the space between "the parts [3? and IE so-ras. to close off thelower end of eitherpassageway 1'6 or. 17; when desired. Astheupper, ends of: the pipes. 12 c'ommiinicatewith such spaces;fit willbe evident thatthefdampers '23 will permit the entry of pre-" heated 'air from either-the passageway IBor ll into 'the' upper end or the. conduits i2.

Withthe partsarranged as shown in Fig. 1", incoming air will enter the upper ends of the passageways--I-B"arid"may'be' heated by s'olarheat while travelling through those passageways into the condu'itsfl-Z from whichthe-preheated-air'will' passthrough th'eihletsfl of'the-oil burning units into the"- lower portions? the barn beneath the tobacco,cnot 'showm fsuspended therein; the

" heat oi the sunis sufii'cient; it is obviousthat lit tle or 'no'heat'need be supplied 'bythe oil' -burners} Atinight whencthe-selar heat i's-not available,- the dampers can be; moved-into'the dottedlinepOsi I tion so' that the incoming' air will then be heated by heat rising from--the= burners and which has been impounded' in-theinner roof l4'.

When the dam ers 20* are inthe dotted line position, it -is evidentthat heated gasfrom the a ortion-0f the-barn may be 'recirculatedf through passageways 1'6, 1 7'; or both, back to the oil burning units. If dampers are in a neutral position, some air may be introduced from the exterior of the barn while gases are being recirculated from the top of the barn. Also, when desired, air at the bottom portion of the barn may be introduced into the heaters through the branches 9.

In the embodiment of the invention illustrated in Figs. 2 to 4, inclusive, the barn is of the type havin a roof 24, slanting from a tall side wall to a shorter side wall 26. Here also the roof has a top 21 and a bottom 28, formed of readily heated and heat retaining material, and these parts are spaced from one another and the space is divided by a partition 29 into an upper passageway 3D and a lower passageway 3|. parts 2'! to 3| may extend from end to end of the barn, or for any desired portion of the length thereof. In this form of the invention, the air is introduced into the barn at 32 through the lower end of the passageway and passes upwardly therethrough and then, downwardly through passageway 3|, into the vertical conduit 33 which leads the preheated air to the oil burning unit or units 34, of any suitable type, such as disclosed in my Patent 2,090,633. When desired, gases may be recirculated from the top of the barn through the passageway 3| and this is provided for by a pivoted damper 35, which, when moved into the dotted line position shown in Fig. 3, will allow gases from the top portion of the interior of the barn to pass downwardly through the passageways 3| and 33.

In order to fully utilize heat-within the barn for the preheating of air passed to the oil burning unit or units, a metal pipe or pipes 36 may extend across the barn and through the opposite walls thereof so that air may enter through either end of the pipe. Such pipe is provided intermediate its ends with a discharge pipe 31 and dampers 38 and 39 are interposed in the pipe 36 between its ends and the branch 31 to control the entry of air to the branch from either of the opposite sides of the barn.

The branch communicates with another metal pipe 40 discharging into the passageway 3|. Due to this construction, air currents moving toward either side of the barn may be used for moving the air through the preheating pipes 36, 31, 40 and 33, to the oil burning unit.

With the embodiments of the invention illustrated, or with any other type of tobacco curer or the like, I may employ the solar heater indicated generally by the reference character 4|. This consists of a door 42 of glass or the like, pivotally suspended at 43 from a side of the barn and adapted to control a window 44. The door is connected at its lower end to a flexible sheet 45 of heat reflecting material, such as polished steel or the like and this sheet, in moving outwardly and inwardly with the glass door, is guided by guiding means 46-arranged at the bottom of the window opening, As best shown in Fig. 4, the sheet cooperates with another similar sheet 41 slidably mounted on a shelf 48, arranged within the barn and pivotally supported by the wall 26, as indicated at 49. The shelf is preferably provided with toggle brackets 50 to hold the shelf in horizontal position or to allow it to hang down on the side wall, as will be evident. Due to this construction, sun rays passing through the glass door or the like will be reflected by the reflectors 45 and 41 into the interior of the barn for heating purposes, and in this way, the solar heat will The augment or may be substituted for the heat produced by the open oil burners.

The adjustable features of the plates 45 and 4'! permits full use to be made of the sun rays in accordance with the position of the sun during utilization of its heat.

Reverting to Fig. 1, it will be noted that a branch pipe 5| may be used to introduce air into each of the pipes 8 from the exterior of the barn or drying house without passing the air along the roof and through the pipe' I 2. To control the passage of such air, a damper 52 may be interposed in the branch 5| and a second damper 53 may be interposed in the pipe l2.

As air entering the upper ends of the roof passageways l6 and IT, in Fig. 1, might have a tendency to travel in sheet form, I prefer to arrange a perforated plate 54 at the entrance ends of the passageways. Such plate, while obstructing the entrance to these passageways, is perforated at 55 for the admission of air into passageway l6, and perforated at 55 for the entrance of air into the passageway l1, Each perforation 55 is preferably associated with a tongue 51, struck from the plate 54 and so arranged as to direct the incoming air upwardly against the top sheet |3 of the roof. On the other hand, tongues 58, associated with the perforations 56 function to direct the incoming air downwardly against the bottom sheet 4 of the roof. By such means, turbulance is imparted to the air and it will be more effectively heatedby the sheets |3 or l4 as it travels toward the pipe |2.

While the invention has been disclosed specifically in connection with tobacco barns, it is obvious that the same may be used in various types of drying houses for drying hops, fruit, lumber,

or most any commodity requiring drying.

It i to be understood that I do not wish to be limited by the exact embodiments of the equipment shown, which are merely by way of illustration and not limitation, as various and other forms of the invention will, of course, be apparent to those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit of the invention or the scope of the following claims.

What I claim'and' desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. In a drying house, a slanting roof comprising top and bottom sheet like heat-conducting members spaced apart and with a partition arranged between them to provide top and bottom passage ways, means for admitting air from the exterior of the house into the upper end of either one of said passageways, damper'means associated with the partition for preventing air from travelling through one or the other of said passageways, and conducting means-for leading air from the passageways to the lower portion of the interior of'the house.

2. A drying house as claimed in claim 1, comprising damper means for controlling the entrance of airinto the uppe'r'ends of the passageways or 4. A drying house asclaimed in claim 1, in.

leading air from said passageways to said fuel burning unit. 6. An apparatus of the character described, comprising an open type fuel burning unit, a

conduit for conducting air to said unit where it,

may mix with the products of combustion and pass upwardly through material in a drying house, a roof comprising top and bottom heat conducting portions spaced apart with a partition therebetween to provide upper and lower passageways,

said conduit communicating with the lower ends of said passageways, damper means in the roof for controlling the flow of air from either or both of said passageways into said conduit, and other damper means for controlling the introduction of air from the atmosphere into the upper ends of the passageways or from the house into said passageways.

7. An apparatus as claimed in claim 6, in which a suction fan is interposed in the conduit between said passageways and the fuel burning unit.

8. An apparatus as claimed in claim 6, in which an air entry branch leads into the conduit adjacent to the fuel burner unit and is provided with a control damper.

9. In a drying house, substantially vertical walls, a sloping sheet-metal member forming a roof for the house adapted to absorb radiant energy from the sun, a sheet-like member of heat conducting material arranged below and substantially parallel to said sheet-metal memher, a partition between the sheet-metal member and the sheet-like member forming upper and lower communicating passageways, said roof having a ventilating opening at the highest point thereof, each of said passageways having an open end, a conduit communicating with the lower passageway extending downwardly therefrom along the inside of one wall, a heating unit mounted at the bottom portion of the interior of the house receiving air from said conduit, and a damper mounted adjacent the ends of the passageways adjacent the ventilating opening mounted f or movement to a position to permit air from within the interior of the house to enter the lower passageway at the end adjacent said ventilating opening,

10. In a drying house, substantially vertical walls, a sloping sheet-metal member forming a roof for the house adapted to absorb radiant energy from the sun, a sheet-like member of heat conducting material arranged below and substantially parallel to said sheet-metal member, a partition between the sheet-metal member and the sheet-like member forming upper and lower communicating passageways, said roof having a ventilating opening at the highest point thereof, each of said passageways having an open end, a conduit communicating with the lower passageway extending downwardly therefrom along the inside of one wall, a heating unit mounted at the bottom portion of the interior of the house receiving air from said conduit, a damper mounted adjacent the ends of the passageways adjacent the ventilating opening mounted for movement to a position to permit air from within the interior of the house to enter the lower passageway at the end adjacent said ventilating opening, said conduit having an air inlet therein forico'neadjacent the heating unit, and a damper trolling. said air inlet. :11. In a drying house, substantially conducting material arranged below andsubstantially parallel to said sheet-metal member, apartition between the sheet-metal member and the sheet-like member forming upper and lower communicating passageways, said roof havinga ventilating opening at the highest point thereof,- each of said passageways having an open end, a

conduit communicating with the lower passageway extending downwardly therefromalong the inside of one wall, a heating unit mounted'at the bottom portion of the interior of the house re-& ceiving air from said conduit, a damper mounted adjacent the ends of the passageways adjacent the ventilating opening mounted for movement to av position to permit air from within the: interior of the house to enter the lower passageway at the end adjacent said ventilating opening, said conduit having an air inlet therein adjacent the heating unit, a damper for controlling said air inlet, and a fan for moving air in said con duit.

12. A drying house provided with a roof, said roof comprising top and bottom sheet-like -mem-;;

bers of heat conducting material spaced apart with a partition therebetween forming upper and lower communicating passageways, means for introducing'air from the atmosphere into the upper passageway, a conduit communicating with the lower passageway and extending downwardly within the house, a heating unit arranged at the bottom portion of the interior of the house receiving air from said conduit, a pipe extending across the top portion of the house and having its ends arranged at opposite sides of the house to permit air to enter the pipe from the exterior of the house at either of two opposite sides thereof, air conducting means placing said pipe in communication with said lower passageway, and. dampers arranged in the pipe between the ends thereof and said air conducting means.

13. In a drying house, side and end walls, a sheet-metal member sloping with respect to the horizontal forming a roof for the house adapted to absorb radiant energy from the sun, a sheetlike member to heat conducting material arranged below and substantially parallel to said sheet-metal member, a partition between the sheet-metal member and the sheet-like member forming an upper passageway and a lower passageway, said upper passageway being opened at the lower end of the sloping sheet-metal member and in communication with the lower passageway adjacent the highest point of the roof, a conduit communicating with the lower passageway, a heater unit within the drying house receiving air from said conduit, said roof having a ventilating opening therein adjacent the highest point thereof, and a movable damper mounted adjacent the ventilating opening for controlling the entrance of air into the lower passageway adjacent the ventilating opening.

14. In a drying house, walls for the house, a roof including top and bottom sheet-like members of heat conducting material spaced apart with a partition therebetween to form upper and lower passageways, said upper passageway being opened at one side of the building and communicating with the lower passageway adjacent vertical.- walls, a sloping sheet-metal member forminga roof for the house adapted to absorb radiantv energy from the sun, a sheet-like member of heat the other side of the house, a conduit communieating with the lower passageway adjacent the.

first side of the house, a heating unit within the house for receiving air from said conduit, and a damper for controlling the admission of air into the lower passageway at said other side of the house.

15. In a drying house, an inverted V-shaped roof having a ventilating opening at the apex thereof, said roof including top and bottom sheetlike members of heat conducting material spaced apart with a partition therebetween of heat insulating material forming upper and lower passageways, a damper mounted on said roof adjacent the ventilating opening for admitting air from the atmosphere to the associated end of the upper passageway, a conduit extending downwardly from an eave portion of the roof to a lower part of the house, means movable to a position directing air from the upper passageway 20 into said conduit, said damper being movable to another position to admit air from the interior of the building to the associated end of the lower passageway, said movable means being shiftable to a position directing the air from the lower 5 passageway into said conduit, and means for moving air downwardly through said conduit.

16. In a drying house, side and end walls, a

sheet-metal member sloping with respect to the horizontal forming a roof for the house adapted 30 to absorb radiant energy from the sun, a sheetlike member arranged under said sheet-metal member forming an inclined passageway from the highest point of the roof sloping downwardlytowards one side wall, a conduit extending downwardly from said passageway along the inside of a side wall of the house, a burner unit within the house receiving air from said conduit, means for controlling the entrance of air into the passageway at the highest point of the roof, and means for moving air downwardly in said conduit.

REUBIN E. MAYO.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 200,789 Davis Feb. 26, 1878 246,626 Morse Sept. 6, 1881 409,359 Johnson Aug, 20, 1889 430,762 Taylor June 24, 1890 965,391 Little July 26, 1910 1,277,619 McMullen Sept. 3, 1918 1,615,964 Straight Feb. 1, 1927 1,645,760 Knipschild Oct. 18, 1927 2,095,186 Gill Oct. 5, 1937 2,273,284 Plott et al Feb. 17, 1942 2,358,423 Stone Sept. 19, 1944 

